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SMITHSONIAN  INSTITUTION 


BUREAU  OF  ETHNOLOGY:  J.  W.  POWELL,  DIRECTOR 


O^v&o’recuj  A'Onfirie.a'rt  ©rl\N\No\oc^o  , 

'Sd  uWtAm  . r / 


BY 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

18  89 


9008 1 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Fig.  1. — The  mummy  pack  and  accompanying  burials. 

Fig.  ‘2.— Spindle  of  wood  weighted  with  a whorl  of  polished  terra-cotta. 

Fig.  3. — Series  of  implements,  most  of  which  were  probably  used  in  weaving. 
Fig.  4. — Curiously  conventionalized  figure  in  gobelins. 

Fig.  5. — Highly  conventionalized  animal  motive  introduced  into  geometric  pat- 
terns. 

Fig.  6. — Human  figure  in  rich  colors,  a masterpiece  of  textile  art. 

Fig.  7. — Analysis  of  the  weaving  of  life  forms  in  gobelins. 

Fig.  8. — Small  piece  of  gobelins  showing  slits  open  and  closed. 

Fig.  9. — Silhouette  of  a small  piece  of  open  gobelins. 

Fig.  10. — The  weaving  of  curved  forms  in  gobelins. 

Fig.  11.— Portion  of  a fringed  mantle  of  remarkable  construction  and  great  beauty. 

3 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


By  William  H.  Holmes. 

The  occasion  for  the  preparation  of  this  paper  was  furnished  by  the 
request  of  Mr.  E.  A.  Barber,  of  Philadelphia,  that  I should  make  a 
brief  study  of  a small  but  select  series  of  Peruvian  fabrics  belonging 
to  him,  and  forwarded  to  me  for  examination.  In  prosecuting  this 
work  I had  occasion  to  examine  the  hue  collections  of  ancient  Peruvian 
textiles  recently  acqumed  by  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology.  These  fabrics, 
so  far  as  is  known,  are  representative  of  the  best  period  of  aboriginal 
textile  art,  and  are  conceded  by  all  to  be  marvels  of  execution  and  de- 
sign. 

But  little  is  known  chronologically  of  the  various  groups  of  art  prod- 
ucts obtaiued  from  the  burial  places  of  the  coast  belt  of  Peru,  but 
most  of  them  belong  in  all  probability  to  what  may  be  called  the  Inca- 
rial  epoch.  Little  definite  information  has  been  gained  in  regard  to  the 
relationships  of  the  people,  racial  or  political,  with  the  historic  na- 
tions, and  for  the  present  we  must  content  ourselves  with  a study  of 
their  remarkable  art  remains.  Many  of  the  more  cultured  American 
nations  were  skilled  in  the  weaver’s  art,  as  we  learn  from  the  accounts 
of  the  Conquerors,  yet  with  a few  exceptions  extremely  meager  traces 
of  the  fabrics  themselves  have  been  preserved  to  our  time.  The  an- 
cient inhabitants  of  Peru,  as  is  customary  with  many  peoples  of  corre- 
sponding grades  of  culture,  buried  a multitude  of  useful  and  valued 
objects  along  with  the  dead,  and  it  happened  that  the  dry  sands  in 
which  the  tombs  were  excavated,  preserved,  through  a process  of  des- 
iccation, not  only  the  bodies  but  most  of  the  fragile  articles  and  deli- 
cate fabrics  that  accompanied  them.  In  the  Sierra  and  upland  regions, 
where  the  conditions  of  burial  were  not  so  favorable,  but  slight  traces  of 
the  more  perishable  articles  appear  to  have  been  preserved. 

By  far  the  greater  portion  of  cloths  and  richly  ornamented  garments 
were  wrapped  about  the  bodies  of  the  dead  and  may  now  be  unfolded, 
layer  after  layer,  piece  after  piece,  from  the  half-decayed  mummies. 
Additional  fabrics  are  contained  in  rolls,  baskets,  nets,  and  vases. 

In  Fig.  1 we  have  an  example  of  burial  given  by  Reiss  and  Stiibel,1 
showing  the  appearance  of  the  mummy  pack  and  the  character  of  the 
accompanying  articles.  The  various  articles  are  intended  to  be  shown 

1 Reiss  and  Stiibel:  The  Necropolis  of  Ancon,  Berlin,  1880. 


5 


6 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


in  the  identical  positions  in  which  they  were  discovered.  At  the  right 
are  earthen  vessels,  baskets,  and  net-covered  gourds,  containing  various 
articles  of  food  and  art,  and  on  the  left  a group  of  sepulchral  banners, 
and  trophies  of  unknown  use  and  significance. 

The  burial  grounds  of  Ancon,  on  the  coast  near  Lima,  have  probably 
furnished  the  greatest  quantity  of  rich  stuffs,  and  many  museums  are 
now  well  stocked  with  handsome  specimens  from  this  famous  necropolis ; 
but  similar  finds  are  reported  from  Pachacamac,  Paramouga,  Cosma, 
Huanico,  Chimu,  and  other  places  scattered  up  and  down  the  coast. 

The  magnificent  work  of  Eeiss  and  Stiibel,  with  its  realistic  chromo- 
lithographic  plates,  places  these  relics  before  the  world  in  the  most  sat- 
isfactory manner  possible,  and  the  handsome  work  of  Wiener,2  although 
without  colored  plates,  contains  a multitude  of  instructive  illustra- 
tions. All  of  these  textiles  are  much  alike  and  appear  to  be  the  product 
of  a single  period  of  culture,  and,  we  may  fairly  assume,  of  kindred  or 
closely  associated  peoples. 


Fig.  1. — The  mummy  pack  and  accompanying  burials. 


The  grade  of  culture  represented  by  this  work  would  seem  to  be  very 
high,  considering  American  products  only,  but  its  equivalent  in  old- 
world  culture  must  be  sought  in  remote  ages.  This  is  shown  in  a strik- 
ing manner  when  we  place  the  more  delicate  pieces  of  Peruvian  work 
beside  fabrics  taken  from  the  mummies  of  ancient  Egypt.  In  quality 
of  fabric,  method  of  construction,  color,  and  style  of  embellishment, 
the  correspondence  is  indeed  remarkable.  The  closest  analogy,  so  far 


2 Charles  Wiener:  Pdrou  et  Bolivie,  Paris,  1880. 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


7 


as  my  observation  extends,  is  with  some  Egyptian  fabrics  of  the  first 
few  centuries  of  the  Christian  era. 

With  the  Americans,  as  with  the  ancient  peoples  of  the  East,  the 
appliances  of  manufacture  were  exceedingly  simple,  but  primitive 
weavers  make  up  for  the  lack  of  refined  machinery  by  a degree  of 
painstaking  only  permissible  with  workmen  who  place  slight  value 
upon  time.  No  looms  have  been  discovered.  A frame  to  stretch  the 
threads  of  the  web,  and  simple  tools  or  devices  for  the  separation  of 
these  and  the  insertion  of  the  woof,  appear  to  have  been  the  only  requi- 
sites in  the  production  of  ordinary  fabrics.  Wiener  found  in  a grave 
at  Pachacamac  an  unfinished  piece  of  gobelins  still  attached  to  the  two 
round  poles,  one  of  which  probably  had  been  fastened  to  some  fixed 
object  and  the  other  perhaps  to  the-  person  of  the  workman.  By  con- 
sulting the  ancient  manuscripts  of  Mexico  we  find  that  a similar  device 
was  in  use  in  that  country.  Fabrics  are  woven  upon  similar  frames  by 
the  Peruvian  natives  of  to-day  as  well  as  by  many  other  American 
tribes.  For  larger  work  more  complete  looms  with  healds  and  other 
devices  similar  to  those  used  by  the  Pueblos  of  to-day  may  have  been 
employed.  Closer  examination  of  the  fabrics  themselves  may  lead  to 
a better  knowledge  of  the  methods  of  weaving. 

The  strands  employed  in  all  classes  of  work  were  spun  from  cotton 
and  other  vegetable  fibers,  or  from  the  wool  of  the  llama,  the  alpaca, 
the  vicuna,  and  the  guaniico,  and  were  generally  moderately  fine  and 
exceedingly  even  and  well  twisted.  Dyes  of  numerous  rich  and  brill- 
iant colors  were  used,  but  their  nature  is  not  known  to  us. 

Spindles  of  wood  were  used,  and  the  artistically  shaped  and  decorated 
whorls  with  which  they  were  weighted  were  generally  made  of  clay. 


Fig.  2. — A spindle  of  wood  weighted  with  a neat  whorl  of  polished  and  painted  terra-cotta. 

The  spindles  of  many  nations  are  very  similar  to  this.  The  threads 
were  twisted  by  twirling  the  shaft  between  the  fingers  and  the  thumb 
or  between  the  palm  and  some  convenient  part  of  the  person.  In 
Fig.  3 we  have  examples  of  a number  of  implements  used  in  spinning, 
sewing,  netting,  weaving,  and  embroidering.  Nearly  all  are  made  of 
wood,  and  many  are  shaped  with  neatness  and  evident  regard  for  taste- 
ful appearance.  Copper  and  bone  also  appear  to  have  been  consider- 
ably used. 

In  a and  b we  have  neatly  shaped  needles,  the  first  with  an  eye  at  the 
upper  end  and  a straight  shaft,  and  the  second  with  an  encircling  groove 
in  place  of  an  eye,  and  a slender  curved  point;  c is  an  ordinary  bone 
awl;  and  d a delicate  needle  pointed  at  both  ends.  A wooden  spool  is 
shown  in  e,  a netting  mesh  in /,  a weaving  band  in  g , and  a thin,  sym- 
metrical, shuttle-like  piece  of  wood,  well  adapted  to  the  parting  of  the 
fine  web  strands,  in  h.  The  peculiar  tool  shown  in  i has  a head  shaped 


8 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


somewhat  like  that  of  a fish,  has  an  incision  at  the  mouth,  and  is  notched 
and  perforated  at  the  neck.  It  may  have  been  used  in  netting  or  in 
managing  the  threads  in  weaving.  The  remaining  figures  illustrate 
varieties  of  spindles  and  spindle-like  implements,  some  of  which  are 
neatly  carved  and  painted. 


Fig.  3. — Scries  of  implements,  most  of  which  were  probably  used  in  textile  work. 


The  textile  products  of  the  Peruvians  included  a wide  range  of  arti- 
cles and  utensils.  So  far  as  the  relics  show,  the  great  body  of  the  finer 
textiles  consisted  of  wearing  apparel. 

For  the  head  there  were  caps,  richly  colored  bands,  and  pendent  orna- 
ments. For  the  body  there  were  mantles,  shirts,  girdles,  sashes,  and  a 
variety  of  wraps;  all  of  which  had  elaborate  ornamental  figures  woven 
in,  and  many  were  furnished  with  a profusion  of  textile  appendages. 
For  the  feet,  sandals  of  various  kinds  were  braided.  Besides  these 
there  were  probably  blankets,  hangings  for  the  doors  and  walls,  and  a 
variety  of  tissues  employed  in  sheltering  from  the  sun  and  elements. 
There  were  ceremonial  fabrics  and  strange  banners  to  accompany  the 
dead.  For  use  in  the  various  arts  there  were  mats,  baskets,  bags,  slings, 
nets,  and  other  articles  in  great  variety.  All  are  purely  American  in 
character,  having  apparently  no  suggestion  of  Spanish  or  other  foreign 
influence. 

Many  of  these  articles  were  woven  iu  their  entirety,  but  it  was  cus- 
tomary to  weave  a garment  iu  parts  which  were  afterwards  stitched 
together.  There  was  no  cutting  and  fitting.  Goods  were  not  woven 
“by  the  yard,”  as  we  would  express  it. 

A very  large  percentage  of  the  articles  forwarded  to  our  museums  are 
embellished  with  designs  woven  in  the  fabric  or  added  as  a surface 
finish.  Many  cloths  were  woven  with  a view  to  ordinary  use  and  were 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


9 


strong  and  durable,  but  it  is  clear  that  durability  was  a secondary  con- 
sideration in  a very  large  part  of  the  work,  and  that  beauty  was  the  thing 
most  desired.  It  would  be  a great  mistake  to  suppose  that  there  was 
in  this  embellishment  any  lack  of  refinement  of  taste  as  judged  by 
European  standards.  Many  of  the  rich  garments  were  doubtless  in- 
tended for  display  in  the  fantastic  ceremonies  of  a barbarous  race  and 
must  have  been  admired  for  their  gaudy  effects,  but  there  is  throughout 
a purity  of  design  and  a refinement  of  color  that  could  be  studied  to 
advantage  by  the  foremost  decorators  of  the  world. 

A most  noticeable  feature  of  these  fabrics,  and  one  calculated  to  chal- 
lenge the  attention  of  students  of  art  development,  is  the  employment 
of  animate  forms  in  decoration.  Both  animal  and  vegetable  forms  ap- 
pear, but  the  former  greatly  predominate.  This  free  delineation  of 
animals  is  characteristic  of  the  native  Americans,  and  is  suggestive  of 
the  close  relationship  held  by  them  to  exist  between  man  and  his  brute 
associates.  In  their  painting  upon  pottery  they  drew  their  forms  with 
a free  hand.  They  carved  them  in  wood,  stone,  and  shell,  modeled  them 
iu  clay,  and  cast  them  in  metal  with  much  vigor.  In  fabrics  the  de- 
lineations take  a character  of  their  own,  a character  dependent  upon 
the  technical  restraints  of  the  art.  The  remarkable  influence  of  the 
web  and  woof  upon  design,  and  the  causes  thereof,  have  been  fully  set 
forth  in  a paper  iu  the  Sixth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology. 
I do  not  need  here  to  go  over  that  ground,  but  shall  call  attention  to 
some  especial  features  of  the  Peruvian  work. 

Generally  the  colors  employed  in  weaving  animal  figures  are  not  ar- 
ranged with  any  reference  to  the  colors  of  nature,  but  are  selected  and 
skillfully  alternated  to  give  the  desired  effect  to  the  decoration. 

The  cleverness  shown  in  introducing  irregular  forms  of  nature  into 
geometric  outlines  without  destroying  them  completely  may  be  illus- 
trated by  almost  any  example  selected  at  random.  One  furnished  by 
Mr.  Barber  is  given  in  Fig.  4.  Here  the  form  of  some  unidentified 
creature  is  imposed  upon  an  ordinary  scroll  pattern,  the  head  in  each 
repetition  taking  the  place  of  the  interlinked  ends  of  the  scroll  units, 
whilst  the  various  parts  of  the  body  appear  along  the  connecting  curves. 

A still  more  formal  treatment  of  animal  motives  is  shown  in  Fig.  5. 

In  this  case  it  is  barely  possible  to  identify  the  features  of  a life  form 
as  the  lines  all  conform  to  the  rectilinear  geometricity  of  the  fabric,  but 
the  head  with  the  eyes  and  the  mouth  appear  at  the  termination  of  each 
hook,  and  in  their  proper  relations  to  one  another.  Beyond  this  very 
formal  presentation  we  have  still  higher  stages  of  convention,  in  which 
the  merest  traces  of  animal  features  may  be  found. 

A most  interesting  example  of  the  conventional  rendition  of  life  forms 
is  shown  in  Fig.  0.  The  fabric  is  a magnificent  piece  of  gobelins,  col- 
lected by  Reiss  and  Stiibel,  and  presented  in  all  its  rich  colors  in  the 
great  work  published  by  them.  It  had  been  separated  into  two  parts 
near  the  middle,  and  through  an  oversight,  perhaps,  these  parts  were 


10 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


not  properly  correlated  by  the  authors.  Joining  the  parts,  we  have  the 
complete  human  figure  as  here  shown,  decked  in  plumes  and  clothed  in 
garments  of  elegant  patterns  and  varied  colors.  It  is  placed  upon  a 


crimson  field  and  is  surrounded  by  varied  devices,  mostly  of  animal 
origin,  which  are  probably  symbolic.  This  piece  is  a triumph  of  skill 
and  taste,  and  one  of  which  no  adequate  idea  can  be  given  in  a mere 
sketch. 


Fig.  5. — Highly  conventionalized  animai  motive  introduced  into  geometric  patterns. 


It  will  be  observed  that  all  the  examples  given  are  woven  in  the 
tapestry  style. 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


11 


Fig.  6. — Human  figure  in  rich  colors ; a masterpiece  of  textile  art. 


12 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


We  find  that  this  was  the  method  almost  universally  employed  in 
richly  decorated  stuffs,  and  for  the  reason  no  doubt  that  complex  pat- 
terns and  pictorial  effects  are  much  more  easily  achieved  by  this  than 
by  any  other  method.  In  plain  weaving,  where  two  series  of  filaments, 
the  web  and  the  woof,  are  employed,  the  best  possible  texture  for  simple 
utility  is  produced.  Both  series  connect  more  or  less  completely  across 
the  piece  and  are  interlaced  approximately  at  right  angles,  giving  great 
strength  to  the  work  ; but  designs,  excepting  checkers  and  plain  geo- 
metric figures,  are  introduced  with  much  difficulty. 

The  gobelins  style  partakes  of  the  nature  of  embroidery,  and  patterns 
of  various  kinds  are  worked  out  with  comparative  ease. 

The  Peruvian  workman  stretched  his  series  of  warp  threads  side  by 
side,  usually  twenty  or  thirty  to  the  inch,  between  two  holding-rods, 
and  upon  this  warp  as  a foundation  he  begau  his  fabrics.  It  seems  that 
he  did  not  begin  as  in  ordinary  weaving  at  oue  end  of  the  piece,  carry- 
ing the  work  uniformly  thread  by  thread  to  the  other  end,  but  worked 
more  or  less  in  patches,  setting  in  independently  one  entire  bit  of  color, 
carrying  the  yarn  back  and  forth  over  that  area  and  pressing  it  down 
until  the  web  was  entirely  hidden  and  both  sides  of  the  work  exhibited 
the  same  figure.  Other  patches  of  color  were  added  to  this  until  the  de- 
sired pattern  was  developed. 


Fig.  7. — Analysis  of  the  weaving  of  life  forms  in  tapestry. 


As  a result  of  the  peculiar  methods  employed  some  unusual  effects  were 
produced,  two  of  which  need  further  elucidation.  The  most  notable 
feature  is  the  open-work  effect  characteristic  of  these  fabrics.  Holding 
a piece  up  against  the  light,  the  figures  appear  partly  outlined  as  trans- 
parencies, the  effect  being  very  pleasing.  In  all  cases  the  slits  consti- 
tuting the  open  work  are  found  to  run  with  the  warp  and  occur  where 
the  outlines  of  the  color  areas  follow  the  warp. 

The  conditions  giving  rise  to  these  slits  may  be  readily  illustrated. 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


13 


The  bit  of  gobelins  shown  in  Fig.  7 represents  on  a large  scale  a por- 
tion of  a figure  of  a bird  and  the  ground  surrounding  it.  The  warp 
threads  are  shown  projecting  above  and  below.  On  these  the  colored 
threads  of  the  figure  were  carried  back  and  forth.  In  the  first  place, 
perhaps,  the  bird  was  partially  or  entirely  outlined  by  carrying  a black 
thread  around  it.  Beginning  at  any  point  within  the  outline,  say,  for 
example,  at  a in  the  lower  margin  of  the  section  given,  the  black 
thread — or  two  black  threads  if  a solid  outline  were  desired — would 
be  carried  obliquely  upward  to  the  left  across  the  web  until  the  turn  at 
the  throat  were  reached.  Above  this  point  the  outline  takes  a vertical 
direction  and  is  parallel  with  the  warp.  Throughout  this  vertical  dis- 

Itauce  the  black  thread  must  be  wrapped  about  a single  warp  strand, 
entirely  inclosing  it,  and  the  same  thing  must  occur  whenever  a vertical 
line  is  to  be  employed  as  at  the  other  turns  of  the  neck,  at  the  end  of 
the  beak,  at  the  back  of  the  head,  and  on  the  right  and  left  of  the  eye. 
When  the  outline  is  all  set,  the  filling  in  of  the  color  areas  begins.1  First, 
supposing  the  head  is  to  be  red,  a red  thread  is  inserted  and  carried  back 
and  forth,  omitting  the  eye  space.  Now,  when  in  the  process  the  ends 
of  the  beak  or  the  back  of  the  head  is  reached,  we  discover  no  means  of 
connecting  the  red  yarn  with  the  black  vertical  outline  strand  without 
covering  or  obscuring  the  latter,  and  the  red  yarn  must  therefore  be 
turned  about  the  last  free  thread  and  then  be  carried  back  across  the 
head,  and  so  on.  Vertical  slits  are  thus  left  between  the  red  and  the 
black,  and  the  same  thing  occurs  along  all  vertical  outlines.  It  will 
further  be  seen  tlmt  when  the  ground  is  put  in  about  the  figure,  cor- 
responding slits  are  left  on  the  outside  of  the  black  lines,  so  that  the 
wrapped  part  of  the  black  outline  remains  quite  free  or  unattached. 

The  effect,  in  cases  where  no  outline  of  a distinct  color  is  used,  is 
shown  in  the  vertical  line  of  junction  between  the  color  areas  of  the 
ground  at  the  right  and  left  of  the  bird.  In  Fig.  8,  the  yarn  of  the 
color  areas  passes  around  contiguous  strands  of  the  web  without  con- 
necting across,  and  an  open  slit,  the  whole  height  of  the  ornament, 
results.  In  pieces  where  many  long  vertical  lines  are  employed,  the 
fabric  is  much  weakened,  and  in  many  cases  in  this  Peruvian  work  the 
sides  of  the  openings  have  been  stitched  together  with  a needle  as  in. 
dicated  at  the  right.  The  transparency  effect  of  this  work  when  placed 
against  the  light  is  shown  in  Fig.  9,  which  represents  in  silhouette  a 
portion  of  the  border  from  which  the  preceding  figure  is  taken. 

Large,  elaborately  figured  pieces  are  extremely  interesting  when 
viewed  as  transparencies.  Similar  but  very  simple  open-work  effects 
are  occasionally  secured  in  ordinary  weaving,  patterns  employing  two 
or  more  colors  being  woven  in  patches  independent  of  each  other,  the 
ground  being  filled  in  by  ordinary  methods  of  woof  insertion.  The  work 

1 It  is  possible  that  these  figures  were  formed  step  by  step  as  the  fabric  advanced, 
the  workman  carrying  each  color  one  step  forward  with  each  movement  of  the  heakls, 
if  such  were  used,  but  the  peculiarities  of  the  goods  will  be  as  clearly  understood 
from  the  point  of  view  I have  taken. 


14 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


in  such  cases  progresses  systematically  from  one  eud  of  the  piece  to  the 
other,  as  in  the  loom  work  of  the  Pueblo  Indians. 

The  slits,  as  in  the  tapestry,  occur  ouly  ou  outlines  that  run  with  the 
web.  In  Pueblo  work  the  junction  line  is  closed  by  passing  the  threads 
of  both  neighboring  color  areas  around  a common  web  thread,  causing 
a slight  enlargement  along  the  line. 


Fig.  8. — Small  piece  of  gobelins  showing  slits  open  and  closed. 


Another  feature  of  tapestry,  in  which  its  superiority  in  the  delineation 
of  natural  forms  is  shown,  is  illustrated  in  Fig.  10. 


Fig.  9. — Silhouette  of  a small  piece  of  open  gobelms. 


In  ordinary  weaving  the  woof  threads  cross  the  warp  at  right  angles, 
or  nearly  so,  and  the  processes  of  insertion  and  beating  down  make  it 
difficult  to  vary  from  this  formal  relation  of  parts,  but  in  tapestry  there 
is  much  freedom,  as  it  is  possible  to  carry  the  threads  to  a certain  ex- 
tent with  the  curves  of  the  figures.  It  will  be  seen,  however,  by  refer- 
ence to  Fig.  10,  that  the  amouut  of  mobility  is  limited ; when  it  is  at- 
tempted to  fill  in  the  curved  beak  of  the  bird  the  threads  are  inclined 
downward,  conforming  to  the  curved  outline.  When  the  final  turn  is 
reached  at  the  curve  of  the  beak,  and  the  outline  descends  with  the 
warp,  wrapping  must  be  resorted  to  and  a straight  line  is  produced,  but 
it  is  more  restricted  than  iu  rectangular  work.  Beyond  this,  in  com- 
pleting the  hooked  bill,  the  threads  are  inclined  downward  to  the  right. 

In  every  vertical  turn  there  must,  therefore,  be  an  imperfection  in  the 
curve,  caused  by  reversing  the  direction  of  the  threads. 

It  will  prove  tedious  to  describe  in  detail  the  numerous  varieties  of 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


15 


weaving,  and  the  very  great  diversity  of  effect  produced,  but  a few 
salient  features  may  be  noted. 

For  all  the  more  ordinary  forms  of  fabrics,  the  prevailing  method  of 
combining  the  web  and  the  woof  is  that  of  simple  interlacing.  By  this 
method,  which  is  known  as  plain  weaving,  many  differently  appearing 
stuffs  are  produced.  We  have  open  work  ranging  in  character  from 
coarse  coffee  sacking  to  hue,  gauze-like  mummy  cloth.  There  are  more 
compact  fabrics,  varying  from  heavy  sail  cloth  to  tine  muslins,  and  in 
closely  impacted  forms  we  have  a ribbed  surface,  in  which  the  warp 
series  of  strands  is  entirely  obscured  by  the  woof.  In  all  of  this  work 
the  decorations  when  employed  are  highly  geometric,  but  animal  form 
are  often  cleverly  introduced. 


Fig.  10.— The  weaving  of  curved  forms  in  gobelins. 


In  open  work,  and  especially  in  that  variety  intended  as  a foundation 
for  embroidery,  what  is  known  as  the  twined  combination  is  employed. 
In  this  the  woof  threads  are  twined  together  in  pairs,  inclosing  in  each 
half  turn  one  of  the  warp  threads.  In  this  way  the  mesh  is  firmly 
fixed,  after  the  manner  of  a net.  This  combination  is  not  adapted  to 
the  weaving  of  compact  cloths,  nor  to  the  introduction  of  varied  orna- 
ments. It  is  much  used  in  basketry. 

A number  of  varieties  of  combination  are  sometimes  employed  in  a 
single  piece,  all  being  woven  into  the  same  warp.  It  is  also  very  usual, 
as  already  noted,  to  see  cloths  made  up  of  variously  woven  and  diversely 
colored  sections  stitched  together. 

We  find  a great  variety  of  netted  stuffs  and  netted  articles,  such  as 
bags,  pouches,  and  covers  for  articles  of  domestic  use.  Threads  of 
varying  degrees  of  coarseness  were  used,  and  the  intersections  were 
thoroughly  knotted  as  in  our  fish  nets.  Knitting  was  common  also,  but, 
as  the  interloopings  are  very  difficult  to  describe,  I will  not  now  under- 
take to  analyze  them. 


16 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


Among  the  most  remarkable  work  I may  mention  the  fabrics  in  which 
dual  series  of  warp  and  woof  threads  are  combined. 

In  a fine,  richly  decorated  example  in  the  collection  of  the  National 
Museum  the  warp  and  the  woof  each  consists  of  a brown  and  a white 
sei’ies  alternating,  thread  for  thread,  and  the  patterns  are  all  solid 
brown  or  solid  white.  While  the  two  browns  ai’e  employed  on  one  side 
weaving  a brown  figure,  the  two  whites  are  on  the  other  side  inde- 
pendently weaving  a corresponding  white  figure.  The  two  layers  of 
stuff,  the  white  and  the  brown,  are  therefore  entirely  free  over  the  area 
of  a single  pattern  or  color  area,  but  are  connected  at  the  margin  of  the 
figures  where  the  two  series  of  threads  cross  each  other  in  passing  to 
opposite  sides. 

This  cloth  also  shows  all  the  figures  as  transparencies  when  held  up 
to  the  light,  since  at  the  crossings  of  threads  from  back  to  front  slight 
openings  occur. 

In  another  style  of  weaving  an  auxiliary  series  of  threads  is  carried 
loosely  across  the  wrong  side  of  the  goods  to  be  brought  through  to  the 
right  surface,  when  a figure  in  that  color  is  desired.  This  is  used  in 
fabrics  intended  to  expose  only  the  one  surface,  as  in  bags,  banners,  etc. 

Hardly  less  interesting  are  some  superb  pieces  of  stuff',  in  which  the 
colored  patterns  are  produced  by  carrying  along  a supplementary  series 
of  warp  threads,  which  appear  only  on  the  right  side  of  the  cloth,  where 
they  are  held  in  place  by  passing  at  proper  intervals  under  threads  of 
the  woof.  The  effect  is  precisely  the  same  as  that  of  embroidery  in 
which  the  colored  threads  are  attached  by  lifting  the  surface  threads 
and  passing  them  under.  Indeed,  in  some  cases  it  is  difficult  to  say 
whether  the  ornament  is  woven  in  or  embroidered.  The  skill  exhibited 
is  truly  marvelous. 

The  ancient  peoples  were  exceedingly  fond  of  fringes,  and  some  of  their 
tasseled  garments  are  marvels  of  elaboration.  A large  mantle  now  in  my 
possession  has  a compound  foundation  fabric  of  patchwork  and  passe- 
menterie work,  consisting  upon  the  surface  of  separately  woven  ro- 
settes, into  which  faces  or  geometric  figures  are  worked,  and  upon  which 
a multitude  of  tassels  and  clusters  of  tassels  are  fixed.  The  fringe, 
Fig.  11,  consists  of  clusters  of  tassels,  and  is  upward  of  20  inches  long. 

The  head  of  each  principal  tassel  represents  rudely  a human  or  animal 
head,  the  features  being  in  relief  and  in  color.  There  are  upwards  of 
three  thousand  tassels  in  all,  and  years  must  have  been  consumed  in 
the  execution  of  the  garment. 

Marvelous  skill  was  shown  in  the  manufacture  of  very  attenuated 
articles,  such  as  bauds  and  cords.  Thus  slings,  which  were  in  some 
cases  made  of  raw  hide  or  simple  cords,  were  often  braided  of  colored 
wools  in  the  most  tasteful  manner  imaginable.  Ornamental  cords  were 
woven,  one  of  which  is  nearly  half  an  inch  in  diameter,  the  surface  con- 
sisting of  a dense,  richly  colored  pile,  giving  the  effect  of  a fine  plush. 

So  skillful  had  these  workmen  become  that  various  animal  forms  were 
woven  or  knitted  in  the  round.  I have  seen  figures  of  llamas,  dogs,  etc., 


TEXTILE  FABRICS  OF  ANCIENT  PERU. 


17 


done  in  colors  in  fairly  close  imita- 
tion of  nature.  Such  objects  were 
probably  toys  for  children. 

There  are  also  embroideries  of  ex- 
cellent quality  and  most  ideasing  de- 
sign. They  are  mostly  worked  upon 
a net-like  fabric  done  in  the  twined 
style,  and  are  in  some  cases  so  delicate 
as  to  resemble  lace. 

Strong,  compact  cloths  were  some- 
times used  as  a foundation  for  em- 
broideries, and  especially  for  the 
application  of  designs  in  feathers. 
Stamped  or  printed  figures  appear  to 
be  extremely  rare,  and  I know  of  no 
well-authenticated  examples. 

Devices  were  used  in  dyeing  by 
means  of  which  spots  arranged  in 
simple  patterns  were  left  uncolored. 

Painting  on  fabrics  was  quite  ex- 
tensively practiced.  The  figures  em- 
ployed are  in  most  cases  copied  from 
the  formal  sub-geometric  figures  of 
the  woven  work,  and  are  often  crude 
in  conception  and  execution. 

A full  discussion  of  the  textile  relics 
of  the  sea-board  belt  of  Peru  would 
require  many  additional  illustrations. 
These  can  not  now  be  prepared  to  ad- 
vantage as  our  collections  are  very 
incomplete.  So  far  as  a presentation 
of  the  articles  themselves  is  concerned 
the  work  of  Eeiss  and  Stiibel  makes 
the  publication  of  additional  illustra- 
tions tor  that  purpose  seem  superflu- 
ous. What  is  now  particularly  called 
for  is  a thorough  study  of  the  bearing 
of  this  great  group  of  art  products 
upon  the  questions  of  technical  and 
aesthetic  evolution,  but  this  work  is 
better  postponed  until  more  thorough 
exploration  of  the  many  burial  sites 
is  made. 


Fig.  11. — Portion  of  a fringed  mantle  of  remark- 
able construction  and  great  beauty. 


9008 2 


DATE  DUE 

JUN  V 

rmi 

HIGHSMITH  # 45220 


